TEST DRIVE MEME #10

[sailmods]

a. that's where we both belong

[you wake up.

it doesn't matter where you were before. going to bed? dying? opening the door to face a great evil? same result. you wake up in a soft bed with starched sheets in a cool, darkened room, sunlight peeking out from behind thick curtains. maybe you're alone; maybe you aren't. maybe you immediately notice the folded paper on the bedside table near your head. if you don't, you better fix that real quick: you won't be able to even open the door before you read it.

the note itself is written in a neat hand on white card stock; there is a stylized logo of a ship with the words SERENA ETERNA printed underneath. the note reads as follows:

Dear Passenger(s),

As your cruise director, it is my great honor to welcome you aboard the Serena Eterna, your destination for fun and adventure! We know you could have chosen any cruise line for your vacation, and we're very grateful you chose ours! On behalf of the Captain, I would like to assure each and every passenger that will we do whatever it takes to fulfill all your needs and desires during your journey with us.

At your earliest possible convenience, please attend the mandatory lifeboat drill by the end of the day. I'm sure everyone is very eager to get started on all the fun and sun, but safety always comes first! You can find your life jacket in your cabin's closet; carry it to your assigned muster station on deck one, where I will take you through the drill. If you can't find me in the crowd, just look for the gal with the winning smile!

See You Real Soon!

Sincerely,
Gal Friday

you walk to deck one. you have no other choice: every time you try to step in a direction some unseen being considers "not towards deck one," you find your legs no longer move, staying stock still, frozen. whether compelled quickly by curiosity, or delayed by pure stubbornness, the result is the same, and you are left milling around with other similarly curious or stubborn people.

you see someone in uniform near the front of the crowd. she seems to be a gal, but is missing the winning smile, along with most of her other features. she seems to see you, though, rushing to your side and placing a lei around your neck with great formality. a voice, cheery but artificial, sees to come from nowhere and everywhere.]

Welcome aboard! I'm so happy you could join us!

[you touch the lei. rooster feathers, lotus seeds, and a carved circle of something white and hard, linked onto a silk string.

after the drill is completed, you are seemingly free to go. or, well, your legs work, now. and maybe that's as good as it's gonna get.]

b. and there's plenty of that down by the sea

[it’s strange to think about, isn’t it? how all those new passengers, the ones grumbling or shouting their way through the forced muster drill, have absolutely no idea what happened just last month. no idea about the labyrinth. no concept of why anyone around them would be a bit more hesitant around shadows.

they’ll learn.

sometimes a shadow is darker than it’s supposed to be. very rarely does anything come of that; just a vague sense that someone is watching you, and little more. sometimes, though, the shadows move. sometimes they grab at your ankles as you walk. sometimes they give you a shove as you go down the stairs. sometimes they pull your hair, or pinch your arm.

sometimes you feel something sharp cut into your lower leg.

that’s not a shadow, though. that’s a fiddler crab. you see the crab, sometimes. the cut isn’t from its claws, which don’t look very intimating; it’s not a very large crab. the cut is from the large kitchen knife crudely taped onto its back. it’s probably fine. it's not chasing you. there isn't evil in its heart. probably.]

c. think I'll go back to the Keys

[one day, in the atrium, two pedestals suddenly appear. on each is a large button: one green, and one blue. pressing the blue button gives you a little treat, popping out of thin air next to you. pressing the green button sends a small electric shock through your body. weird, but, hey, pretty avoidable, right?

except, it seems to be spreading. to every other button on board.

in the elevator. on the soda machine. the arcade. your phone. the bell on Friday’s desk.]

Comments

[maximumcake]

Max's stomach does a summersault when he first reads that text, until the winky face registers. Oh. OH. That kind of help.

On my way!

He arrives at the spa breathless from running, because even if it isn't an emergency, exactly, Max will still always come running like an eager puppy for his loves.

But when he gets through the door, his jaw hits the floor. Is that... BASH?? He's so shocked you'd think he'd seen a ghost. For once, he's speechless.

[midnightroads]

"Well, hey there, sweetheart."

Bash stands, opens his arms in what is clear invitation. Smiles like the full moon in the night sky glowing just for Max.

[professionalriot]

Ash waves at Max from where he sits with the nail polish. He likes a good surprise.

"Watch his toes, baby. They're still wet."

[maximumcake]

Max points a finger at Ash, "You're getting a hug in a minute."

But first things first, he practically tackles Bash, locking him in a crushing hug. The nails can be repainted! "I can't believe you're really here. I thought I'd never see you again. Bash! Bash! When? Is... is Jeff with you?"

[midnightroads]

Ah, fuck. There it is, the question he'd been dreading having to answer. Bash's face buries into Max's shoulder.

"Just me, sorry."

As if, it's somehow his fault that the bright bard, the star of his life isn't here. But this is a celebration, right? He can't be bringing down the mood.

"So, I hear there's a pillow pit now?"

[professionalriot]

"An orgy free pillow pit." Ash adds with a smirk.

[maximumcake]

"No, I'm sorry. I know how much you miss him." Max squeezes tighter one last time before letting go. Bash is the one that will hurt most not having Jeff here. He shouldn't be apologizing.

Max, hearing that comment from Ash, gives Bash a playfully chiding look. "Bash, no planning orgies in the pillow pit. We don't have ghosts to clean up for us anymore. I got it as a gift, so I get to make the rules."

[midnightroads]

"Okay, where do I get to plan orgies and will you both join me for one? Getting my brains fucked out sounds like the only way to celebrate my return. Or fucking someone's brains out, I'm not picky."

There's a small teasing glance at Ash

[professionalriot]

He will try not to blush and fail miserably. His cheeks are warm and he's smirking at the two of them.

"I haven't been involved in a orgy since the eighties." But he does have a kind of private Harry Potter bedroom now. Is he really entertaining this?

Ash chuckles and rubs a nervous hand across the back of his neck. "I mean, if..." He hasn't talked to Max about any of this before. What is or isn't okay. "I can't tell if you're being serious right now or not, man."

[maximumcake]

He chews his bottom lip anxiously. God, he'd be so into a threesome with these two. It would be a dream come true but... he can't. Not when he knows how much he and Bash are alike in certain ways.

Fuck.

Ignore how cute Ash is when he's blushing. Ignore how heat is building in his own chest too. He owes Jeff this much. He'll keep Bash safe now.

Max takes Bash by the hand and then reaches to take Ash's hand too, careful of the nails. "You know I would be so into that idea. I mean, that's like wet dream levels of hot. But... I think maybe what you actually need first is some cuddle time in the pit."

[midnightroads]

There's a bit of a huff. It's hard to say whether the tone is disappointed, relieved or just Brat™, but he lets Max have his hand.

"Maybe I do."

[professionalriot]

Okay. That's a better place to start. He's been picking up on the sads from Bash and doesn't want to be that guy. Even if he is standing in a room with two of the most beautiful men he's ever laid eyes on.

"I am absolutely a massive cuddle slut." He tugs Max's hand and kisses the inside of his wrist. He's kicking off his shoes as he leads them to the pillow pit.

[maximumcake]

"For the record," Max says with a grateful smile to Bash first, then Ash especially after that sweet kiss, "We are taking a rain check on that idea because I'm not going to be able to stop thinking about it forever." He's developed so much willpower, look at him.

He follows Ash's lead, kicking out of his own shoes. With a gremlin grin he says, "By the way, doing a belly flop into there is the actual best. You have to try it."

[midnightroads]

Bash de-shoes as well, letting out a warm laugh. "Let me see you do it, first, so I know the proper form. Both of you."

[professionalriot]

Ash grins. Rain check on a filthy night with the two of them? Yes. Absolutely. He won't be able to stop thinking about it. But, he's with Max on this, it's not the right time. They can still have fun, they can snuggle, help Bash find some comfort that won't come with guilt.

He'll let Max go first. Ash isn't going without Bash. Not a belly flop per say...instead he is going to scoop Bash up and put him over his shoulder, give his ass a smack for good measure. Once Max flops into the pillow pit he's going to toss Bash in.

[maximumcake]

"What? Afraid I might squish ya?" Valid, honestly.

"Here I go!" Max bellyflops down into the center, then rolls over on his back to look up at them both. He cackles with glee seeing Ash straight scoop Bash up, with a slap on the ass for good measure. Fuck, why did he make that rule about no orgies in the pit again?

[midnightroads]

Bash yelps, but not in a pained or upset way, when his ass is smacked, and then he's thrown into the pillows, landing in a sprawl beside Max, laughing. Laughing. It's ridiculous and fun and reminds him a little of a snowball fight.

[professionalriot]

One thing Ash excels at, being ridiculous and fun. He picks up on emotions, it's easy to know when people need something light to pull them out. When Bash yelps Ash cackles with joy. If you can still laugh not all hope is lost, that's probably Ash's life motto.

He does not splat his big frame into the pillow pit. Instead he crawls on his knees between Max and Bash. Stretching out on his belly one arm loops around Max's waist and he lays his head on his chest. But he's staring at Bash. Yeah. Swooning. His other arm slips around Bash's waist to pull him into the Ash/Max puddle.

"C'mere." He purrs at Bash.

[maximumcake]

Max laughs right along with them, a bright peal of sound that bounces off the bizarrely painted walls.

With Ash between them, lying on his chest, Max is also looking at Bash with soft brown eyes full of love. It's easy to forget all the woes of life when he's safe and warm and comfortable in this cuddle paradise with two of his favorite men.

His hand reaches up to pat Ash on the head and thread fingers through his hair. It's an action that's so natural now that he doesn't even give it conscious thought.

"I'm really happy to see you again, Bash. I missed you so much."

[midnightroads]

"Well, I'm back. You've got me, again." He moves to slot himself in, trying to find that golden position that will allow him the most contact with both of them, legs tangling with both of theirs playfully. "You look real good, Max. Like. You been doing some growing, huh?"

Not like that, you dirty-minded twits.

[professionalriot]

He doesn't need to know the details to understand there is a connection between these two. Ash grins, "So this was a thing? The two of you?" Yes, this dirty minded twit is thinking about it now.

"Hold on, hold on. We have to fix this." Ash moves and shifts until Bash is between them. "You belong in the middle." He all but purrs against Bash's neck. He can peek at Max from behind Bash. An arm falls lazily over his waist. His finger tips teasing Max to come closer. If you are going to be cuddled no better place then sandwiched between this pair.

[maximumcake]

For once, Max doesn't rise to the dirty joke implied, because he's so proud Bash noticed. "I really have. I'm... actually free." He isn't the scared slave looking for a replacement master anymore. He's his own man.

But, leave it to Ash to get them back on the dirty train tracks. "Guess you could say so. Not, like, official boyfriends. But we've been good friends with benefits. Bash is one of the best friends you can have." And, yes, he is hoping to make Bash blush with that.

Max laughs and shifts a little to let the other two swap positions. And as soon as they do, he snuggles right back in practically reading Ash's mind. He's facing both of them now, taking turns gazing at them both with big doe eyes. If he could capture this moment in time and keep it forever, he would.

[midnightroads]

“Freedom looks good on you.” He reaches over to cup Max’s face for a moment, then relaxes back into the cuddle. It’s warm. It’s so warm, he could just bathe in the feeling of this all forever. Maybe he will, no one’s rushing him to get up.

Friends with benefits, that’s one way to explain it. And there are still benefits to be had, perhaps. “So, no orgies, but are there any rules about kissing in the pillow pit?”

[professionalriot]

Ash has only recently learned about Max's life as a pet to a vampire. But, he couldn't agree more with Bash, freedom does look good on him. Max being in control of his life is something to be proud of. Ash knows from personal experience with vampires that it isn't often situations like Max's end well.

He slips his other arm under Bash's head. Serves two purposes, a very warm pillow, Ash runs hot and now he can brush his fingers along Max's jaw and trace his nose. "Good friends are hard to come by." He chuckles softly. "That was not a dick joke, by the way. Before either of you make it dirty!"

Ashley is a very physically affectionate person. Even with friends. He loves to cuddle and touch and be as close as possible. He would sleep in this pillow pit wrapped up with these two. Or his bed. Ash bumps the end of Max's nose with his finger. "Max is in charge of the pillow pit. He makes the rules."

[maximumcake]

Max closes his eyes and basks in both his lover's touches. Freedom feels good, too. Finally. This feels so good. So right.

"See, now that just sounds like a challenge. I've never found it hard to cum by either of you~" Ash, you knew he would do this. He never met a sexy pun he wouldn't say out loud.

"Yeah, my pit, my rules. And I say making out isn't very messy so I'll allow it."